Machines and electrical devices commonly require the use of electrical connector arrangements comprising a male plug inserted into a female socket. Such electrical connector arrangements usually allow the device, or components of the device, to be disconnected from electrical power to allow disassembly, maintenance, or repair of the device.
Electrical connector arrangements for complex machinery may include a plurality of electrical pins on a male connector which mate with a corresponding plurality of pin sockets in a female counter connector. The male and the female connector are generally shaped or notched so that they can be connected in only one orientation to allow proper mating.
Thereto, WO 2007/006335 A1 discloses a connector arrangement for connecting a contact receptacle of a connector and a contact header of a counter connector. The connector arrangement includes locking means for maintaining the contact receptacle in an intermediate position into a frame of the connector, and unlocking means for releasing the contact receptacle from its intermediate position.
However, in some situations requiring electrical connector arrangements, the connector arrangement must be positioned in a location inaccessible to human sight.
Thereto, WO 1988/010525 discloses a self-aligning electrical connector arrangement for aligning and connecting multiple pins of a male coupler with the corresponding multiple pin sockets of a female coupler in a blind environment. A cylindrical standpipe is attached to and extends axially from the female connector. The end of the standpipe remote from the female coupler comprises a ramp sloping to a lug slot in the standpipe that extends toward the female coupler. The male coupler includes a lug comprising a cam follower or roller for following the cam of the standpipe.
However, this self-aligning electrical connector needs to be further improved for application fields, where the connector arrangement must be positioned in a location not only inaccessible to human sight, but also in a location hardly accessible to human reach. In such location, it must be further facilitated to correctly align and connect the connector arrangement, as it is hardly impossible to check the alignment visually and tactilely and it is further difficult to fiddle the connector into the counter connector. Obviously, such a connector is likewise very advantageous in normal situations, since the self-aligning facilitates and secures the mating process also in conditions, where the connector parts are easily accessible.